Watsco Inc. (WSO) Trading Down 2.2%

Watsco Inc. (NYSE:WSO)’s share price dropped 2.2% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $140.62 and last traded at $140.69, with a volume of 99,768 shares. The stock had previously closed at $143.88.

WSO has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays PLC lifted their price target on shares of Watsco from $104.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 18th. Robert W. Baird restated a “buy” rating and issued a $144.00 target price (up previously from $136.00) on shares of Watsco in a report on Thursday, April 21st. Susquehanna initiated coverage on shares of Watsco in a report on Wednesday, June 1st. They issued a “positive” rating and a $154.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $123.00 to $127.00 in a report on Thursday, April 7th. Finally, Seaport Global Securities boosted their target price on shares of Watsco from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company an “accumulate” rating in a report on Thursday, April 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. The company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $136.30.

The firm’s 50 day moving average is $135.21 and its 200-day moving average is $127.79. The company has a market capitalization of $4.53 billion and a PE ratio of 28.07.

Watsco (NYSE:WSO) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 20th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters’ consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $851 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $845.52 million. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.65 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Watsco Inc. will post $5.49 EPS for the current year.

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 29th. Investors of record on Friday, July 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.85 per share. This represents a $3.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.44%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 13th.

Several institutional investors have added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OppenheimerFunds Inc. acquired a new position in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $16,948,000. Eagle Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $8,277,000. Sei Investments Co. raised its position in Watsco by 105.1% in the fourth quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 65,872 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,716,000 after buying an additional 33,751 shares in the last quarter. Trexquant Investment LP acquired a new position in Watsco during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,349,000. Finally, Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Watsco by 40.8% in the fourth quarter. Liberty Mutual Group Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,416 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,806,000 after buying an additional 4,470 shares in the last quarter.

Watsco, Inc (Watsco) is a distributor of air conditioning, heating and refrigeration equipment and related parts and supplies (HVAC/R). The Company operates in the HVAC/R distribution industry in North America. It has market coverage on an export basis to Latin America and the Caribbean, through which it serves more than 50,000 contractors and dealers that service the replacement and new construction markets.